PODCAST: Does Facebook have a misogyny problem?

With pages dedicated specifically to ‘creepshots’, rape ‘jokes’, and the 12-year-old slut meme page (as well as a numerous other pages dedicated to ‘sluts’), there is a growing concern that Facebook has a bit of a misogyny problem.

Trista Hendren has a series at Elephant Journal about Facebook’s anti-feminism, noting that, while Facebook often allows derogatory and sexist posts about women, it simultaneously penalizes feminists who speak out against said posts. She notes that “Facebook has allowed hyper-sexualized images of women to remain, as well as comments, posts and pages that support rape culture.”

Child pornography on Facebook primarily manifests through closed groups created by pedophiles to share photos and videos of abused children and through profiles of abused children, created by their pimps or abusers. Often, specific sex acts can be “ordered” on Facebook, and can include extreme violence and heinous brutality.

Sandy Garrosino of The Red Hood Project co-authored an open letter demanding that Facebook address cyberstalking and the sexual exploitation of young girls that takes place via their site. She and the other authors argue that: “Real safety in social media requires systemic change across the industry.”

So while Facebook claims it likes to err on the side of allowing people to express their opinions freely, they also do make choices about what to censor and what to allow. Often what is allowed contributes to the objectification and sexualization of women or, quite literally, encourages hatred and violence against women.

In this episode, I speak with Soraya about sexism on Facebook, why it should be taken seriously, and how it could be addressed.

Founder & Editor

Meghan Murphy is a freelance writer and journalist. She has been podcasting and writing about feminism since 2010 and has published work in numerous national and international publications, including New Statesman, Vice, Al Jazeera, The Globe and Mail, I-D, Truthdig, and more. Meghan completed a Masters degree in the department of Gender, Sexuality and Women’s Studies at Simon Fraser University in 2012 and lives in Vancouver, B.C. with her dog.